Lightning Sign Draft Pick Alex Hutchings

The Tampa Bay Lightning signed left wing Alex Hutchings to a standard, three-year entry-level contract today, Vice President and General Manager Steve Yzerman announced.

Hutchings, 5-foot-10, 173 pounds, played in 68 games with the Barrie Colts of the Ontario Hockey League last season, recording 47 goals and 81 points. He ranked second on the Colts in goals and points. Hutchings was tied for fourth in the OHL for goals. His plus-44 rating was also third on the team. Hutchings played in 13 playoff games with Barrie last season, notching two goals and 10 points.

A native of Burlington, Ontario, Hutchings has played in 229 career OHL games, all with the Colts, registering 111 goals and 208 points. During the 2008-09 season he led the Colts in goals with 34, assists with 34, points with 68 and plus/minus with a plus-27. He also led Barrie with 29 goals and 54 points in 2007-08.
Hutchings was named to the OHL Eastern Conference All-Star Team during both the 2008-09 and 2007-08 seasons.

Hutchings, 19, was drafted by the Lightning in the fourth round, 93rd overall, of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. He will be participating in the Traverse City Prospects Tournament, which gets under way tomorrow with the first scheduled practice.

Lightning Add Mike Angelidis

In another depth-signing, the Bolt have added forward Mike Angelidis:

LIGHTNING SIGN FREE AGENT CENTER MIKE ANGELIDIS

TAMPA BAY – The Tampa Bay Lightning have signed free agent center Mike Angelidis to a one-year, two-way contract today, Vice President and General Manager Steve Yzerman announced.

Angelidis, 6-foot-1, 200 pounds, has played in 235 career AHL games, all with the Albany River Rats in the Carolina Hurricanes organization. During that time he has amassed 42 goals and 85 points with 456 penalty minutes. In 2008-09 Angelidis led the River Rats in penalty minutes with 142 and was also tied for fifth in goals with 15. During the 2007-08 season he was second on the team in penalty minutes, tied for sixth in goals with 11 and sixth in points with 27. Angelidis also played in 24 games with the Florida Everblades during the 2006-07 season, recording 10 goals and 18 points.

A native of Woodbridge, Ontario, Angelidis spent his junior career with the Owen Sound Attack of the Ontario Hockey League, where he amassed 78 goals and 132 points in 240 contests. He had his best junior season in 2005-06 when he ranked third in the OHL for goals with 53 while being named to the league’s First All-Star Team. Angelidis was also awarded the Dan Snyder Memorial Trophy as the 2005-06 OHL Humanitarian of the Year. That season he was also voted at the league’s Most Improved Player in the Western Conference Coaches Poll. Angelidis also finished second in the voting for Most Underrated Player and Most Dangerous in the Goal Area.

Angelidis, now entering his fifth professional season, signed with Carolina as an undrafted free agent on July 21, 2006

Tampa Bay Lightning Sign Dominic Moore to 2-Year Contract

From the team press release:

TAMPA BAY – The Tampa Bay Lightning have signed free agent center Dominic Moore to a two-year contract today, Vice President and General Manager Steve Yzerman announced.

“Dominic’s skating ability, strength on face-offs and versatility will be a great edition to our line up,” Yzerman said. “We’re pleased to welcome him to the organization.”

Moore, 6-foot, 196 pounds, has played in 374 career NHL games with the New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Minnesota Wild, Toronto Maple Leafs, Buffalo Sabres, Florida Panthers and Montreal Canadiens. He has amassed 45 goals, nine power-play goals, three shorthanded goals, three game-winning goals, 128 points and 243 penalty minutes. Moore has also played in 23 career Stanley Cup Playoff games with New York and Montreal

A native of Thornhill, Ontario, Moore split last season between the Panthers and Canadiens, recording 10 goals and 28 points in 69 games while averaging just less than 15 minutes of ice time per contest. He ranked 18th in the NHL among forwards who took 600 face-offs or more, winning 365 of 663 draws for a 55.0 percentage. Moore was traded from Florida to Montreal on February 11 and went on to play in 19 Stanley Cup Playoff games with the Canadiens.

Moore went on to play in 19 postse games with Montreal in 2010, recording four goals and five points. He ranked tied for second on the team in plus/minus with a plus-1, tied for third on the team for goals and fifth among forwards in average ice time with 14:33.

A former forward at Harvard University, Moore played four seasons for the Crimson, skating in 128 career games. He recorded 64 goals and 83 assists with 135 penalty minutes. Moore finished his college career 11th on Harvard’s all-time scoring list and 10th on the school’s all-time goals list. While with the Crimson he was named the most valuable player and was named to the ECAC All-Tournament Team during his senior season. Moore was also named the Ivy League Rookie of the Year during his freshman season while also helping Harvard to the Ivy League Championship.

Moore was drafted by the New York Rangers in the third round, 95th overall, of the 2000 NHL Entry Draft.

Lightning Add System Depth, Ink LW Chris Durno

In a rare Sunday morning free agent signing, the Bolts inked left wing Chris Durno to a two-way contract. Durno is an AHL veteran. 

The official press release is below:

LIGHTNING SIGN FREE AGENT LW CHRIS DURNO

TAMPA BAY – The Tampa Bay Lightning have signed left wing Chris Durno to a two-way, one-year contract, Vice President and General Manager Steve Yzerman announced.

Durno, 6-foot-4, 205 pounds, played in 41 games with the Colorado Avalanche last season, recording four goals and eight points with a plus-3 rating. He set NHL career highs for games played, goals, assists, points and shots on goal. Durno also appeared in one Stanley Cup Playoff Game with the Avalanche. He has played in 43 career NHL games with Colorado during the previous two seasons.

The Scarborough, Ontario native has played in 293 career American Hockey League games with the Norfolk Admirals, Milwaukee Admirals, Portland Pirates, San Antonio Rampage and Lake Erie Monsters. He has amassed 89 goals and 175 points. He scored 20 goals or more on two occasions (2005-06, 2007-08). Durno played in 17 games with Lake Erie last season, notching 10 goals and 18 points.

Durno has also played in 147 career ECHL games with the Gwinnett Gladiators, registering 52 goals and 124 points. Before joining the professional ranks, Durno played his college career at Michigan Tech where he played in 130 games, recording 22 goals and 48 points.

An undrafted free agent, Durno was originally signed as a free agent by Chicago by the Chicago Blackhawks on September 25, 2006. He was then traded to Anaheim by the Blackhawks with Sebastien Caron and Matt Keith in exchange for Pierre Parenteau and Bruno St. Jacques on December 28, 2006. Durno was then sent to Nashville by Anaheim in exchange for Shane Endicott on January 26, 2007. He was then signed by Colorado on July 3, 2008.

Lightning Add Marc Pouloit

First things first: the Lightning traded for Simon Gagne earlier this week. We had not previously mentioned this on this Stream.

This afternoon, the Bolts came to terms with former first-round draft pick Marc-Andre Pouliot and a two-way contract:

LIGHTNING SIGN CENTER MARC-ANTOINE POULIOT

TAMPA BAY – The Tampa Bay Lightning, NHL parent club of the Norfolk Admirals, have signed center Marc-Antoine Pouliot (MAHRK ahn-TWAHN poo-L’YAHT) to a one-year, two-way contract, Lightning Vice President and General Manager Steve Yzerman announced today.

"We are pleased to make Marc-Antoine a member of the Lightning organization today," said Yzerman upon making the announcement. "He fits the mold for the type of person we want on our roster and we look forward to seeing what he can show us in training camp this fall. He will add depth at the forward position and has a great chance to become a contributor in Tampa Bay." 

Pouliot, 25, is a 6-foot-1, 195-pound center from Quebec City, Quebec. He appeared in 35 games last season with the Edmonton Oilers, scoring seven goals and 14 points. Pouliot also skated in four games with Edmonton’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Springfield Falcons, scoring one goal and six points. A veteran of five professional seasons, Pouliot has appeared in 176 career NHL games – all with the Oilers – scoring 21 goals and 53 points. 

In 157 career AHL games between the Falcons, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and Hamilton Bulldogs, Pouliot has scored 51 goals and 129 points. In 2005-06, he was named Bulldogs MVP in a vote of his teammates and was also named Hamilton’s top rookie by the Bulldogs broadcast team. He ranked second with the Penguins in scoring during the 2007 Calder Cup Playoffs with ten points in 11 games. Pouliot also ranked second in goals and points with the Falcons during the 2007-08 season with 21 goals and 47 points in just 55 games.

Pouliot was drafted by the Oilers in the first round (22nd overall) of the 2003 NHL Entry Draft. He played junior hockey in the QMJHL with the Rimouski Oceanic, recording 111 goals and 268 points in 205 games. He finished third in the QMJHL in scoring in 2004-05, recording 45 goals and 114 points in 70 games en route to his selection as a QMJHL First Team All Star. He captained the Oceanic for two seasons.

 

[Note by John Fontana, 07/23/10 6:18 PM EDT ] This post had been edited to correct the player name.

The Lined-Up Update (Via Raw Charge)

Over at Raw Charge, we keep an ongoing list of transactions that have taken place during the course of the off-season.  Here you'll find the current status of the roster entirely after several re-signings since our last update.

The Lined-Up Update does not reflect the cap situation, nor does it pretend to tell teh tale of who will make the roster.  But all players listed played in the NHL last season.

This is not an entirely accurate list as it does not include every signed player or prospect in the system, or Lightning property that remains unsigned...  It also includes players who may or may not end up in the minors.  

Here's a breakdown at current of who's signed and who isn't... Who's on the roster and who's been traded (updated 7.16.2010 @ 6 PM):

(Key: Signed, unsigned, left via free agency / via trade, unsigned RFA / Lightning property, UFA signing, acquired via trade, signed draft pick):

FORWARDS

• Center
  • Ryan Craig (Pittsburgh Penguins)
  • Blair Jones
  • Zenon Konopka (NY Islanders)
  • Vincent Lecavalier
  • Steven Stamkos
  • Nate Thompson
  • Paul Szczechura
  • James Wright
• Left Wing
  • Todd Fedoruk (Bought out)
  • Johan Harju
  • Ryan Malone
  • Radek Smolenak (Czech Extraliga)
  • Alex Tanguay (Calgary Flames)
  • Stephane Veilleux
• Right Wing
  • Brandon Bochenski
  • Steve Downie
  • Mark Parrish
  • Niklas Persson (KHL)
  • Teddy Purcell
  • Martin St. Louis

DEFENSE

• • Brett Clark (Colorado Avalanche)
  • Kurtis Foster (Edmonton Oilers)
  • David Hale
  • Victor Hedman
  • Scott Jackson
  • Pavel Kubina (Atlanta Thrashers)
  • Matt Lashoff
  • Mike Lundin
  • Andrej Meszaros (Philadelphia Flyers)
  • Vladmir Mihalik
  • Mattias Ohlund
  • Paul Ranger
  • Matt Smaby
  • Matt Walker

GOALTENDERS

•  
  • Dan Ellis (Nashville Predators)
  • Riku Helenius
  • Antero Niittymaki (San Jose Sharks)
  • Karri Ramo
  • Mike Smith
  • Dustin Tokarski

Transaction History:

The Puck Moving Defenseman Has Arrived

Local beat writers had been pointing this out for months: with the absence of Paul Ranger from the Lightning lineup, the team lacked a puck-moving defenseman to help the offense. Someone who could move the puck out of the defensive zone – by way of pass or carrying it – to help jump-start the offensive attack.

The Lightning signed such a player on Monday in 33 year old Brett Clark.

Read more about the Clark signing at Raw Charge.

"Zeke" Konopka, Alex Tanguay also depart Lightning

Thursday also saw Left Wing Alex Tanguay depart the Lightning for the Calgary Flames, where he played with some success previously. Tanguay did not go quietly into that fair night as he did lob a shot at the Lightning:

“I just didn’t get to play,” Tanguay said. "I went for a while when I played two minutes a game, three minutes a game. I felt great at times, but I just didn’t get to play.

“I want to get back to the level I think I can play. Last year was a difficult year for me. After last season, there are a lot of people doubting my ability.”

Tanguay did not fit the TB system, but who exactly did last season?

Oh, that’s right, Zenon Konopka. And The player lovingly known as Zeke among some fans, was another Free Agent casualty. He signed with the New York Islanders this afternoon. He was told formally by Lightning GM Steve Yzerman that he was not in Tampa Bay’s plan for the future.

Additions And Subtractions For Lightning Via Free Agency

The Tampa Bay Lightning have made a number of moves since the onset of free agency at Noon on Thursday....  Most can invoke hope, while some of the departures may trigger disappointment, as fan-favorites have signed elsewhere.

The biggest positive from day-one of free agency might not have been a free agent signing at all.  Martin St. Louis, the mighty mite and oft-considered the heart and soul of the Lightning, was re-signed to a four-year contract extension.  St. Louis was entering the last year of his previous contract, and July 1st afforded them the first opportunity to get him back under contract.

The signing will likely ensure that St. Louis will finish his career with the Lightning.

Antero "Frank" Niittymaki, Finnish goaltender who often stood on his head while team mate goalie Mike Smith seemed mentally elsewhere, signed as a free agent with the San Jose Sharks.  And Kurtis Foster, the 6'8" defenseman with the glass-breaking slap-shot, also departed for other pastures (signing a dealw ith the Edmonton Oilers).

The one big free agent signing from Thursday was that of goaltender Dan Ellis.  Ellis will replace Niittymaki for the Lightning and likely will push his friend and former teammate Smith for starting time.  

And to top this off?  Long time Lightning fans may rejoice (or cringe, depending on your opinion of the guy) in the news defenseman Pavel Kubina has been signed.  Kubina had been the most tenured Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman in team history up until his departure in the summer of 2006.

Free agency will go on for some time yet, and more moves are expected...